Barb Jungr sings Bob Dylan

Every Grain of Sand is a breathtaking revelation on several fronts. First, Barb Jungr treats Bob Dylan as one of the great tunesmiths of the American popular tradition. Not merely as rock & roll's preeminent songwriter, the direction from which virtually all others have approached his canon, but as a sophisticated composer the equal of the Gershwins, Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, or Cole Porter. Jungr dramatically re-reads that canon and she fearlessly reshapes it in the process. To cite the most radical instances, she turns "Things Have Changed" into an Eastern European jig and "Tangled up in Blue" into a jaunty, jazzy western, while "Born in Time" is a marvel full of Baroque voicings. One may quibble -- and Dylan fanatics, known to be provincial on occasion, certainly will, perhaps vociferously -- with an arrangement here or a lyrical interpretation or subtle shading there without -- and here is the magic of the album -- in the least invalidating the singer's choices. Indeed, part of the sublime beauty of Every Grain of Sand is that it inspires, even challenges, one to make personal revisions and reinterpretations. Ultimately, Jungr is one of the few artists who has managed to not only come out on the other side of this songbook unscathed, but to actually come out having enhanced its gravity, significance, and unvarnished beauty as well as her own. She is not merely singing, but telling stories. She opens up a window of vulnerability and sensuality that had previously sat stoic beneath the surface of these songs and suffuses them with such a delicate, gauzy luminosity that they seem to glow from the inside out. Her singing is soulful and emotionally naked, and the performances are so expressive that you take something new away with each listen. The treasures ("I'll Be Your Baby Tonight," "Ring Them Bells," "Not Dark Yet," "Is Your Love in Vain?," and "What Good Am I?") tucked away here are endlessly rewarding. If you think you've heard Bob Dylan -- or Barb Jungr -- before Every Grain of Sand, you are, simply put, mistaken. -- Stanton Swihart (AMG) Nightlife Exchange
'There are many highlights and surprises in this profoundly original approach to Dylan.'
more >>

Broadway World
'Jungr doesn't just interpret Dylan songs, she re-imagines them'
more >>

I heart the road
'Her voice is pure and holds that languid quality that have jettisoned stars like Colbie Caillat to Lana Del Rey to the top in recent years.'
more >>

New York Theater Examiner
'The arrangements and interpretations are unique and lovely, heart wrenching, funny and satirical'
more >>

NY Culture
"...the most significant vocal album of the 21st century thus far"
more >>

The Independent

"Except for Dylan himself on a good night, this is the best way to hear his songs."
more >>

Record Collector
'So persuasively did Jungr inhabit the songs that...one entertained the thought that she might have understood them better than their author.'
more >>

The Telegraph

"Communicating real, heart-felt emotion is what this cabaret singer is all about."
more >>

Bebop Spoken Here
...I can only describe the experience as WOW! See her for yourself.
more >>

Newbury Today
...as good a set as we have heard
more >>

Variety
Wider Stateside recognition is in order.
more >>

HMV Choice
This CD should both satisfy Jungr fans and surprise Dylan diehards
more >>

Mojo
The kind of voice that many more should get around to hearing.
more >>

Amazon.co.uk
An intriguing outing into Dylan territory.
more >>

The Guardian
(A) haunting collection of 15 Dylan numbers.
more >>

Jazz Views website
Jungr is one of the most talented current British female singers.
more >>

The Times
Jungr's sensual performance casts the songs in a fresh light.
more >>